Disposable hypodermic syringes are widely used in hospitals and other medical facilities to draw body fluids from and to inject medications into patients. These syringes are made disposable because of the difficulties and inefficiencies involved in re-sterilizing syringes for reuse. Because the syringes are intended to be disposed of after use, a problem arises as to their safe post-use storage and disposal and in preventing them from being recklessly reused by others. By law syringes may not be disposed of as ordinary waste since their sharp needle tips, as well as disease causing organisms sometimes carried by them, may injure hospital and waste disposal personnel.
To dispose of syringes safely, devices have been devised that mechanically sever the syringe needles from their barrels. These are exemplified by those shown in U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,255,996, 4,445,644 and 4,969,379. Though these devices do prevent reuse of syringes, a sharp needle stub remains intact and hazardous. Other types of syringe destruction devices grind the syringes into small pieces as shown in U.S. Pat. No. 4,905,916. These however do not provide for sanitary syringe residue disposal. Furthermore, their shearing action tends to release fluid contaminates to ambience.
Incinerators have also been used to destroy syringes is a sanitary manner. Bulk incineration of accumulated syringes however poses the threat of injury still occurring during accumulation and incineration input. Thus, portable devices have been used which can incinerate the needles by passing an electric current through them. This approach is described in U.S. Pat. No. 4,877,934 and 4,965,426. These devices however leave the barrel portion of the syringe with an opening at one end through which contaminates may emerge to ambience. Furthermore, some pathogens contained within the needle and expelled from the syringe during insertion are not killed by the incineration process.
It thus is seen that a need remains for a method and apparatus for destroying syringe needles in a more effective and efficient manner. It is to the provision of such that the present invention is primarily directed.